Merlin's Voice
by WeatherRains
Summary: Arthur hears Merlin singing one day while they're both drunk, and he can't get it out of his head. (No slash. Established Gwen/Arthur relationship and Merlin is already Court Sorcerer).
1. Chapter 1

_Hey, so this is my first fanfic on this site. (I do have a Harry Potter fanfiction going, but that's another story.. literally) I know the chapters are very short, that's because this was going to be a oneshot but I prefer uploading bits at a time, you know? Anyway. Tell me if you like it, if you don't like it, if you want me to combine the next chapters into longer ones. Any sort of feedback is appreciated. (Just, fyi I don't even know where this story came from. I think it stemmed from the fact I've never heard Colin Morgan sing and I bet he'd have a really sorta entrancing voice but not necessarily be a good singer... so there you go). _

Arthur only had one memory of Merlin singing.

It had been the day when Merlin was finally made Court Sorcerer and Gwaine had convinced the knights, the king and Merlin that they all deserved a few good pints of ale. Arthur had protested at first, stating how he needed to look after Llacheu. Elyan had reminded him Llacheu had Gwen to look after him for tonight. Beyond that, it didn't take much persuasion to get Arthur drinking.

Two hours later saw all of them drunk. Percival held onto Gwaine, giggling like no tomorrow as the latter tried to chat up the ugly new barmaid. Elyan and Leon were still forcing ale down their throats, challenging one another to see who was quickest.

Arthur and Merlin, however, were doing something else. Arthur sat on the floor of the Rising Sun Inn, staring up in drunken awe at his Court Sorcerer. Merlin was standing on a table in the middle of the room, holding some sort of instrument Arthur had never come across. Merlin swayed gently as he played the strange instrument and strummed it's thin strings, and he sang along with it.

Drunk, Merlin was no amazing singer, but Arthur found the sounds entrancing. Merlin had his eyes closed, and the king bet they were glowing gold underneath his eyelids, because no music could be that brilliant without some help. And where in Albion had Merlin learnt to play that weird instrument? Arthur had definitely never seen it before and didn't think Merlin had ever mentioned being able to play a... whatever it was.

The words of which Merlin sang were not of Albion tongue. They rolled over each other smoothly, rhymed when it seemed impossible and Arthur knew if this was in his language, no one would take any heed to the melodic song being played by his ex-manservant.

As it was, though, all eyes fell on Merlin when he performed. Even Gwaine, probably the drunkest of them all, turned his head away from the barmaid to look at Merlin in wonder.

The warlock took no heed to the crowd he was drawing in.

Merlin had never been one to show off, or to boast about his powers or talents (not that he thought he had many) but this time, he either allowed them to watch as they grew more involved in the song, or didn't notice in his drunken state. So he carried on, with his ballad.

To Arthur, when the song finished, it seemed as though it had only started a few seconds ago, and judging by the other men's reactions, they thought the same. On the last note, Merlin drew it out as long and as sombrely as he could, finally finishing while opening his eyes at last. He drew in a quick breath and everyone seemed to snap out of the trance the young sorcerer had put them in.

Arthur was the first to move, but never took his eyes off Merlin's blue orbs. As he stood, Merlin stepped down off the table. They stood face to face.

"Merlin... that was..." Arthur couldn't finish his sentence. He didn't know what it was he had just witnessed. He knew Merlin wasn't the best singer he'd ever heard... but yes, he was the best singer he'd ever heard.

"Merlin! Mate, that was... wow. Who knew you could sing like that?" Gwaine slurred as he joined the two men. All three ignoring the crowds shouts for more music. The Court Sorcerer just shrugged and felt his face grew red, the adrenaline was wearing off now but the alcohol was still in him.

"I think... I'm going to go to my chambers." And before anyone could stop him, the young warlock was gone, sprinting to his new chambers in the citadel he'd only been assigned that afternoon.

The king stared after him, vowing never to forget how Merlin sang.


	2. Chapter 2

_Okay, wow. The response I had for the first chapter was brilliant! Thank you to all who reviewed/favourited/are now following me or the story. Here's the second chapter, it's still pretty short but not as short as the first one. But I doubt it will be as good as the first. Ah well, you read it, you tell me. I tried to keep Arthur and Merlin in character, but sorry if I wasn't really able. Anyway, enough with my ramblings. Happy reading!_

The next morning, Arthur awoke with a pounding headache, but at least he was in his own bed. After all that ale the night before, the king feared he may have passed out somewhere undignified. Light streamed through the partially closed curtains and he blinked furiously.

"Good morning."

The king nearly screamed. Not only did the voice scare him out of his wits, but it also caused his headache to increase tenfold. Arthur groaned and the voice from before laughed. Then Arthur recognised it.

"What are you doing here, Merlin?" Arthur mumbled into his pillow.

"I thought you might like a hangover cure, but I can see you don't want to be disturbed." The king imagined the warlocks cheeky smile that went with the sarcastic comment.

"Just give it to me, _Mer_lin." He heard footsteps approach the bed, then whispers of a language he didn't know but recognised. Warmth spread through Arthur's body, relieving his headache and fatigue he didn't even realise he had.

Pushing himself up, the young blond realised he was only wearing his socks. With as much subtlety as he could manage, he pulled the covers right up to his neck, making sure he was covered.

"Who undressed me last night? Where are Gwen and Llacheu?" It had only just occurred to him that his wife wasn't beside him, and neither was his child in the cot at the foot of the bed. Merlin stifled a laugh.

"You undressed yourself, Sire." Arthur's face grew red, embarrassed and angry at himself. "And your wife and son awoke hours ago. Noon was ages ago." Again there was that cheeky smile.

"Wait... I undressed myself... Where? When? _Why?_"

Merlin chuckled and began to get out clothes for Arthur. Sure, he had been relieved of his manservant duties, but that didn't mean he didn't want to do it.

"Gwaine told me. Apparently you and him got very friendly last night." The kings eyes were as wide as plates.

"What?" He squeaked, coughed, then repeated the question. Merlin laughed heartily.

"Don't worry, Arthur. You didn't do it in front of anyone of importance. Just your knights." Groaning, Arthur pulled on his trousers and Merlin made to help him with his shirt, before Arthur spoke.

"What actually happened last night?"

"Do you remember any of it?" Merlin was surprised. Sure, they had been drunk, but they hadn't been that drunk, had they?

"Oh." Suddenly, it all came rushing back to Arthur. "You sang... last night. I... don't remember much else." Arthur hit the side of his head gently, attempting to make the memories resurface.

"Yes, I did. And I think we should never speak of that again."

Merlin didn't look at the king as he said it, but Arthur knew his Court Sorcerer's face was bright crimson.

Why was Merlin embarrassed? He was only singing, it's not like he was smooching that ugly barmaid of Gwaine's in public... So what was the matter? Oh. Arthur realised that maybe Merlin had let himself slip a bit last night, he had shown himself to others. Some part of him, that even Arthur had never seen before. This part of Merlin though, Arthur liked. He wanted to see it again, the way Merlin got so caught up in the song and the way he played that crazy instrument like there was no tomorrow. Arthur needed to see that part of Merlin again.

"Where did that instrument go? The one you were playing last night? And what in the name of Albion was it?" Arthur was fully dressed now and he faced Merlin as the raven haired man began to unnecessarily clean the room.

"Uh... it wasn't technically an instrument." Frowning, Arthur gestured for Merlin to elaborate.

"Go on."

"It was... it was something I created. It was part of my magic actually. I don't know how I created it, I just thought at the time, my voice needed some accompaniment." Merlin stuttered over his words then shrugged quickly. "I don't know."

Arthur stared at him in amazement.

"You created it? As in, you conjured it from nothing?" Merlin nodded and the king raised his eyebrows. There was a pause.

"Sorry, sire-"

"Merlin-"

Both men had tried to speak at the same time. Arthur gestured for Merlin to speak.

"I just wanted to apologise for my behaviour last night, Arthur. It was my first night of being Court Sorcerer, I hope you can forget what I said and did."

There was another awkward pause as Arthur tried to comprehend what Merlin meant by that. Why was Merlin apologising? He'd done nothing wrong. Heck, the king had gotten more drunk than him.

"Why are you saying sorry, Merlin? You've nothing to be sorry for." Before Merlin could protest, Arthur continued. "You know, I'd like you to play in front of everyone. Not just the court. How would you feel about that? Some people have been a bit reluctant to accept you as their Court Sorcerer as we found out yesterday at the ceremony, and I think seeing you play this instrument made of magic, would really help them to accept magic as something which can be good." Both men took a deep breath.

"Um... well... I need to go, and clean these!" Merlin picked up random articles of clothing that had been strewn across the floor, and rushed out the door, not looking back.

Arthur was left, dazed, in the middle of the room. Why the hell wouldn't he sing? Embarrassment? Maybe, it did seem like Merlin after all. But, no, there was something more. And Arthur was determined to find out what.


	3. Chapter 3

_Wow. Again. The amount of favourites and reviews and followers I have for this are amazing! Thank you guys so much. Just so you guys know, I'll try to update every day, or every two days depending on how busy I am. (But I'm rarely that busy so I'll try every day). I also felt kinda unmotivated with this chapter seeing as how they announced today this series of Merlin will be the last. I nearly cried. Yeah... I just really love Merlin, okay? I hope though, that this will spur A LOT more Merlin stories. I love me some Merlin fanfictions. Especially the uber long ones. Anyway, sorry. This chapter is kinda like ugh but I don't know. As I said before, happy reading!_

Merlin burst into Gaius' chambers, and began pacing. He knew Gaius was watching him from the corner of the room by the bookshelf with a startled look upon his face, but Merlin was too caught up in his own thoughts to say anything.

"Of course, Merlin, come in, make yourself at home." Gaius said sarcastically, and sat down facing the warlock.

"Gaius, this isn't funny. What am I going to do?" Merlin was muttering more to himself than the man he used to live with.

"Merlin," their eyes met, "come and sit down. Tell me what the problem is. Is being Court Sorcerer for Arthur not living up to expectations?" Gaius allowed himself a small grin but it vanished when Merlin didn't return it.

"I sang. Last night, in the tavern, I got so drunk that I sang, Gaius. Arthur wants me to sing again... for everyone! What if what happened last time happens again? It was bad enough singing in the tavern." The raven haired man stared intently at Gaius as he sat, who leaned back on the wooden bench.

"Oh, my boy," The old man got up to walk around the table and put a wrinkled hand on Merlin's shoulder. "It will not happen again. It was a completely different circumstance."

Even though Merlin knew this was the truth, and that Gaius was trying to comfort him, it was doing nothing for the anxiety he was feeling. Surely it couldn't happen again, could it? Of course not, Merlin was just being stupid. Still, there was always the possibility...

"Maybe you should talk to Arthur about this. I'm sure he would understand."

The Court Sorcerer got up and started to pace again, narrowly missing Gaius a few times as his eyes were glued to the floor in thought.

"Merlin!" A shout came from the corridor outside the closed front door. Merlin stared with wide eyes at it until it swung open, revealing none other than the king himself.

"Merlin, where have you been? What's going on? Mary said you just dumped my clothes in the sink and left!" Arthur wasn't really angry and his ex-manservant could see that. He looked almost concerned for Merlin. Gaius raised his eyebrow in his signature expression as he went back to his bookshelf, knowing the two men needed a little privacy.

"Sorry, sire, I just wasn't feeling well and I thought maybe Gaius would have a tonic that I could take and then I'd get right back to washing your clothes," Merlin knew he was rambling, just as the other men in the room knew too.

"Sit, please." Arthur gestured to the bench, as he took up the one Gaius was previously occupying. Sceptically, Merlin eyed his best friend, but did as he suggested.

Without saying a word, Merlin raised his eyebrows and bowed his head a little.

"I saw how you acted after you sang last night, and how you were acting this morning. What's going on? Why don't you like to sing?" Arthur leaned forward slightly, preparing himself for the answer, however he didn't get the answer he was expecting.

"Oh, I love to sing. I just... shouldn't." The king cocked his head.

"Shouldn't? Why ever not? It's only singing." If Arthur were to receive that answer to that question, really, he would have been laughing, or at least trying to disguise his smile. However, this time, the look on Merlin's face kept him frowning.

The young man was now looking at the door to Gaius' chambers, almost as if he wanted to escape. Like a deer surrounded on all sides, ready to be shot down. Arthur attempted to get in his line of sight, only managing to awkwardly scoot off the bench and nearly topple onto the cold floor, then Merlin looked at him.

"Sire?"

"Don't 'sire?' me, Merlin. You never call me sire unless you're feeling particularly nervous or you've done something wrong. Now, which is it? And tell me why." Merlin didn't even meet his eyes. "Please, Merlin. Tell me something!" Arthur panted and Merlin stared at him for a moment.

"I bet Mary was angry I left your clothes just lying there. I should probably go collect them. Don't worry, I'll wash them with magic in my chambers."

Before Arthur could stop him, Merlin was rushing out the door again. But Arthur could see, just before Merlin left, there was something in his eyes. Something he definitely wasn't telling him. Gaius sighed from by the bookshelf.


	4. Chapter 4

_Howdy. Thanks again for all the reviews/favourites/blahblahblah. I've realised my authors notes are far too long for anyone to want to read them so here's a quick one. Sorry if this chapters no good but hey, other characters! Oh and sorry for not updating yesterday, I was feeling pretty low.. Anyway let me know what you think, happy reading!_

An idea suddenly popped into the kings head.

"Gaius!"

The old man was brought abruptly out of his reverie by the ancient bookshelf and raised his head to Arthur, even though the blond still had his back to him.

"Yes, sire?" Gaius moved around the table to look at the king.

"You must know something about this. About Merlin's behaviour recently and why he doesn't want to sing. Tell me, Gaius,_ please_." Inside his own head, Arthur snorted. Did he really want to find out so bad that he had to resort to begging? Arthur paused in his thinking. Yes. Yes he did. Sitting down heavily opposite, Gaius sighed.

"There's not much I can tell you, I'm afraid. Even I do not know the whole story but I will tell you what I can without revealing too much. Really, Merlin should be telling you this." He sighed again but carried on. Arthur leaned forward, anxious and slightly excited. "It happened eight years ago, in Ealdor-"

"Eight years ago? That was the year Merlin came to Camelot, wasn't it?"

Before the old physician could speak, he was once again interrupted as the door to his chambers flew open. Sir Leon stood in the doorway, and for a moment looked sheepish, as though he'd just intruded on a private conversation by the way the two men inside were looking at him.

"Sire, Merlin's mother is here." And with that, Leon left.

"Hunith? But it's not... Oh." Arthur remembered. He had asked Merlin to invite his mother for when Arthur appointed Merlin Court Sorcerer, and apparently there had been a flu outbreak in Ealdor. Hunith had had to stay there, so as not to let the disease spread before it was completely gone, only today was she able to make the two day ride to Camelot.

"Sire?" Gaius asked and Arthur stood, walking out the door beside the stooped old man.

"I completely forgot Hunith was arriving today." The day before, on the day of the ceremony, a young boy had ridden into the city and presented Merlin with a letter from his mother, and speaking about how he had rode ahead of her with the letter. The letter read that Hunith would be there the following day.

As Gaius and Arthur walked briskly through the citadels corridors, towards the front entrance, a small voice came from behind them.

"Daddy!" Llacheu was held in his mother's arms, squirming and holding his hands out to his father. Gwen grinned, Arthur returned it.

"Good afternoon, Guinevere. And hello to you." He kissed Gwen and took his child gently in his arms.

"Arthur, where have you been all day? I just bumped into Merlin, he said you've been up for a while but was in a rush to tell me anything more." They continued to make their way through the castle, Gaius now a few steps ahead of them as he had only sent a smile and a courteous nod Gwen and Llacheu's way.

"I've just been a little busy. I am sorry, Guinevere."

Gwen smiled again and put her hand on his arm.

"Don't worry. Did you know that Hunith has arrived? I sent Leon to get you." She frowned.

"Yes, he found us. We're going to greet her now, actually. I take it you haven't said hello yet?" Arthur fiddled with Llacheu's hands as the young boy made grabbing hands at his father's hair.

"Not yet, no."

They stepped out into the bright sunshine of the courtyard and surveyed the scene.

Merlin was beaming as he helped his mother down off a thin-looking brown horse and hugged her tightly. All Merlin's closest friends were there to greet Hunith too, some for the first time.

Arthur saw as Gwaine gallantly took Hunith's hand and placed a kiss upon it, to which she blushed profusely and Merlin had to look away to groan. The king and queen laughed, they were eager to join their friends but there was something Arthur had to tend to first. He adjusted Llacheu in his arms so they could converse properly (or at least, Arthur talk while little Llacheu listened).

"Llacheu, listen to me now. There is a very special lady down there who we're going to meet in a minute, and I don't want any funny business. You should behave like the prince you are, yes?" Arthur blew out a big breath as Llacheu could do nothing more than to look at him, puzzled. Perhaps his son was still a little too young for talks like this. He was still technically only a toddler, only just learning to speak anyway.

"Come on, Arthur." Gwen giggled, seeing his exasperation. Arthur once again bounced Llacheu into a more comfortable position, and followed his wife down the steps.


	5. Chapter 5

_I know! I'm an ass. I'm so sorry I didn't get this up before. I just had so much stuff to do with school then dentists then the internet went funny and would only let me on the internet for a few minutes and ugh it's just been ugh this week I'm so sorry I didn't get this up earlier I'm such a boob. Anyway, I hope to be posting again in the next few days, I know I said earlier I'd try every 1-2 days but that seems like it won't work. Give me 4 at most, then I give you permission to hate me. Sorry! _

"Hunith!" Gwen embraced Merlin's mother warmly, who returned the greeting.

"Hello, Arthur, and this much be Llacheu." Hunith tickled the young child gently and smiled at the king, remembering when he had told her to never call him 'sire' or 'milord' again.

"Say hello, 'Cheu." Arthur grimaced at Gwaine's nickname, but ''Cheu' waved his hand enthusiastically at Hunith anyway.

Merlin stood watching the greetings from beside his mother's horse in amusement and slight nostalgia. He smiled lightly and handed the reins to the stable boy who'd just arrived.

"Shall I show you to your chambers, Mother?" Picking up her bags, Merlin made to move towards the citadel, but Arthur stopped him.

"Merlin, I'm going to have a word with your mother, just for a moment. Carry on, we'll be right there." Arthur gave his best smile to Hunith and her son. Even the knights looked a little confused, but Merlin nodded.

"Okay, I'll see you up there then." As Merlin left, the knights scattered, knowing their king wouldn't have wanted anyone to overhear his conversation with the Court Sorcerer's mother. Gwen took Llacheu in her arms and frowned, then she gave him her 'you are so going to tell me everything later' look and went back into the castle.

"Yes, Arthur? What is it?"

The king could nearly hear the cogs turning in her head, trying to figure out why he would want to talk to her privately, and without Merlin there. Arthur could see she was having to control herself, lest she spill out a few hundred questions about what they were doing. He chuckled and gestured for her to follow him and they walked, with no sound, towards the citadel.

When Hunith and Arthur reached his own chambers, he again gestured with his hand for her to sit down opposite him with his desk in between them. There was silence for a few more moments, then Arthur leaned forward and clasped his hands together in front of himself.

"Hunith, Merlin has been acting rather odd lately... And by odd, I don't mean Merlin odd, I mean, weird odd. It only started yesterday night but it's been going on throughout the day and I want to find out why.

"Merlin sang, last night. We all got a little bit drunk." He blushed a little but shook it off. "And he sang. Then after he was finished he ran off, looking like he'd committed treason. This morning, too, he's not really been himself.

"Gaius said something happened in Ealdor, just before Merlin came here. Do you know what that was? Please, could you tell me?" Arthur sucked in a deep breath and for the first time looked Hunith in the eyes. Her dark eyes were wide with concern and surprise, they softened.

"Arthur, I understand that you want to know what's going on. Honestly, I cannot tell you. It is not my story to tell. I apologise, sire. However, I suppose I can tell you that after Merlin sings, he thinks he knows that no good could ever come of it, only darkness." She had stopped suddenly, fearing she had said too much. Her tone had been light yet serious, and Arthur knew she wouldn't tell him the rest of the story, even if he begged.

"Thank you, Hunith. I will be talking to Merlin about it soon. I just hope he tells me." Arthur stood up, and Hunith followed suit. Arthur realised he should talk to Merlin again. If all else failed, he could always order him to answer, he was only the Court Sorcerer...

Hunith gave a small, comforting smile.

"If he wants to tell you, that is his choice, Arthur. You mustn't force him, especially with matters such as this." The king silently cursed himself, was he really that easy to read?

"Of course, Hunith. Now, I think your son is awaiting us in your chambers."


	6. Chapter 6

_Hey look! New chapter! I don't know why people keep favouriting this it's just sorta going on and on, isn't it? But we're getting to the climax of the story soon so yay! A few more chapters I think and that'll be it. Thanks to everyone who reviewed and such. (Oh and Hunith is probably a bit OOC sorry bout that.. actually they're all probably a little OOC.. apologies (and sorry it's so short this time too I just wanted to get this up because next chapter Merlin tells Arthur everything EEK))_

When Arthur and Hunith entered her chambers, Merlin looked up from his place sitting on the bed. He grinned, but then his eyebrows furrowed.

"Where have you two been?" He asked, eyeing them.

"Arthur, if you'd be so kind to leave us for a moment, I'd like to have a word with my son." Hunith sat on the bed next to him, and Arthur bowed his head and ducked out the door knowingly.

Arthur had known Hunith had wanted to talk to Merlin alone before the king could talk to him, because once Arthur and his ex-manservant were alone, Arthur would beg Merlin to know what was going on, so Hunith had wanted to warn her son before that could happen. The king had agreed, albeit reluctantly. Sure, he could see some benefits to tell Merlin Arthur wanted to know what was going on, but it could also scare the young man off.

"Merlin, Arthur wants to know why you won't sing, and I think it's time you tell him. He's your best friend, he'll understand." Hunith put a comforting hand on her sons shoulder and looked at him sympathetically.

"I'm scared, Mother. What if he hates me because of it?"

"Merlin!"

Merlin started in shock. He had never heard his mother use that tone of voice with him; stern and seemingly a little angry. "Of course Arthur won't hate you." Her voice softened, and she moved her hand to his cheek. "Where on Earth did you get that idea from?"

Sadly and ashamedly, he looked at the stone floor and felt his ears go red. He spoke quietly.

"Because it's just another thing I haven't told him."

Hunith felt her heart break for her son. She knew what he had been through when Arthur had found out about his magic, and knew what Arthur had done to Merlin for lying. No, it was never about the magic for Arthur, it was because it was Merlin, his manservant who had lied to him about having magic, about being supposedly the most powerful warlock to ever exist! Now it was the same. Just another thing he hadn't told King Arthur and he didn't want history to repeat itself, either with what happened in Ealdor all those years ago, or what happened with his king just a few short months in the past.

"Oh, Merlin. He must see why you kept this to yourself, but you mustn't suffer in silence any longer. Tell him, Merlin, get it all out. Just from what I've seen today, it looks like this is tearing you up inside. Please, at least consider it. He's going to understand why you didn't tell him. What happened will never happen again, I swear to you." She took his face in her gentle hands and kissed his forehead. Tears welled up in both their eyes, but refused to let them escape.

"Thank you, Mother. I think... I think I'm going to tell him." Merlin gave a definitive nod and hugged his mother tightly, both of them smiling.

"I'll leave you to it then." Hunith pushed herself from the bed and gave her son one last long look, before slipping out the door.

It was obvious Arthur had been waiting by her chambers, he came in almost immediately after she had left. Merlin breathed outwards heavily. This was it.


	7. Chapter 7

_Okay, so I'd originally thought it would be easier to get this all up in one go, but apparently my mind had different ideas and made it the perfect point to stop at so ugh, here you go. Also it's not even half way done so imagine how long it would've been otherwise! Anyway, I hope you can tell this is a flashback of sorts and that the next few chapters will probably be as well as it's showing why Merlin doesn't sing and I'll be quiet now. Sorry if you wanted it all in one, this just seemed more logical. (Oh and if you know where I got the name Walter from, please don't review with it because you know..) Anyway sorry if this doesn't live up to expectations. Jeez long authors note I really am sorry. _

For the most part, the villagers of Ealdor were very close to one another. If someone was starving, everyone else pitched in, even when that meant giving away the little food they had themselves. If someone was sick, they would put what small amount of money they had collectively to try to buy medicine. Yes, the people in that tiny village cared for each other; they knew each other's names and knew their stories... However, there were three people who never showed their true colours, until it was too late.

Hunith discovered Merlin's magic a few years after he had been born. Sitting in a rotting high chair, he had been giggling to himself as his mother washed the plates with her back to him. She took no heed to his laughter as he was generally a very happy little boy. Then, as she turned around, the plate crashed downwards.

Merlin's eyes were a burning golden and the dining table was hovering gently, a few feet off the stone floor. Seeing his mother's shock, and hearing the plate smash, Merlin instantly stopped giggling, his eyes turned back to their normal blue orbs and the table clattered back to Earth.

"Merlin," Hunith breathed, for she could not think of anything else to say.

Merlin had lived his life in fear. Fear of being caught doing the thing he loved most, fear of being different. He feared becoming a monster.

It was his sixteenth summer and the day had been stifling. The young boy had helped in the fields, cooked what little food his mother and he had, then had visited the elders of Ealdor, just to talk to them a while and check up on them, for Hunith had been appointed Healer of the village as she had the most knowledge of medicine from what small things Gaius told her in his letters which came every few weeks.

As he watched the sun slowly sink below the horizon of trees, Merlin smiled lightly to himself. He stood in the middle of the village square, mud hardened by heat beneath his shoes, and sweat dribbling uncomfortably down his back. But that night would be special, amazing.

It was the middle of summer, and every year Ealdor would group together, light a fire and entertain one another with dance, music, stories and fairy tales. It lifted people's spirits. Living in Ealdor was difficult, there was no one considered 'rich' (apart from an elderly man by the same of Walter, but he's later in the story), and no one considered in charge. This usually meant conflict was settled by the villagers, who weren't the brightest of folk and the conflicts sometimes ended with violence.

Tonight would be different though. There would be only happiness for the villagers, and Merlin was anxious to see everyone perform their piece in the celebration of sorts.

Also, he was going to perform tonight, for the first time. It was tradition that when you turned sixteen, the next summer solstice you would perform, and now that Merlin was of age, he had to entertain his peers.

There was only one problem: Merlin didn't know any songs except the lullaby his mother had taught him, nor had he ever properly sang before.

Sure, Merlin loved humming to himself on a particularly good day, but he never got the chance to sing, not really, so he had no idea how his voice actually sounded. It was made worse by the fact that Merlin couldn't dance or play an instrument either, and God forbid he ever tries telling a story again after what happened when he looked after Anna's children.

Maybe one day I'll have stories to tell, Merlin thought and grinned to himself, pondering the notion he could very well set off on a big adventure some day.

He shook the thought from his mind and went back to wondering about what he was going to do that night.

_"I can't play an instrument, Mother," Merlin sat at the table and chewed on his stale bread and Hunith sat opposite him._

_"Merlin, you can do so many amazing things. You sing well, remember when I was sick and you sang to me?" She grinned and he returned it, ears going slightly pink._

_"Yes, Mother, I remember. Though I don't think a lullaby is what the people really want to hear, and I was only humming it, it wasn't that great..." His eyebrows furrowed as he thought about it. Maybe he should just sing the lullaby his mother taught him when he was small. They had always sang - or, in Merlin's case, hummed - it to each other in times of need. Hunith stared at her son for a moment. _

_"I believe you can do it," She touched his hand gently and he set the bread down._

_"Okay. I'll consider it if I can't find anything else. Thank you, Mother."_

The lullaby had no words, just a soft melody Merlin knew by heart and as the sun disappeared and the fire by the edge of the houses was lit, Merlin knew what he was going to do.


	8. Chapter 8

_Hello again! Sorry I haven't updated in 8 days, things have been so hectic with mock exams and revision and I made a new friend so I've been talking to her for hours everyday, meaning I could get nothing done. Anyway, you don't want to hear about that. Just read. (Oh and I feel like the next one might take a while too, because school and stuff (yeah we're not on Xmas holidays until Friday, how sucky is that?))_

The villagers sat in front of the fire in an arch, the glow of the flames reflected by their eager faces. Adults and children alike were sitting as one in the warmth of the orange fire, and many were laughing, joking. Some looked around at all the people nervously, anxious about performing that night, wondering when there had been this many people in Ealdor.

One person following that same thought was Merlin. His blue eyes went from left to right, and back, scanning the small crowd he was sitting in amongst. Merlin knew every single one of their names; to keep himself occupied before his big performance he started to recite everyone's names in his head.

Sophie, Gillian, Morgan, Daniel, Alana, Walter... Wait. Why was Walter there? Merlin paused in his thoughts, staring at the old man resting on the ground a few people away from him.

It was a well known fact in Ealdor that Old Man Walter - as the children often called him - never left his tiny cabin on the other side of the village. His daughter and he had lived there for as long as anyone could remember, and no one could remember a time when his daughter had been seen by anyone, for Walter kept her shacked up in that miniscule shack they lived in.

Walter only came out of his home when travellers passed through Ealdor with something expensive or interesting to sell as he liked to show the wealth he had compared to the other people of the village.

So why was Walter there of all places? It was obvious he hated anything akin to fun... Wait.

There was a young girl beside him, perhaps a year or two younger than Merlin. The warlock furrowed his eyebrows and narrowed his eyes. That couldn't be Walter's daughter, could it? Walter and the girl weren't talking to each other, just sitting in a comfortable silence as if they had done it for many years. Merlin realised they probably had, if this really was to be Walter's daughter. Suddenly, Merlin found himself wondering why no one knew the girls name, surely someone must know. Though he could see why they might not, as she was only ever seen a few times in the past when looking for her father who'd been away too long.

Merlin paused. The party had begun.

A village elder - Merlin could never remember their names exactly - stood up and greeted the crowd of excitable villagers and the noise died down. Now, the burning logs cracking was the only sound to be heard. The elder smiled warmly, his thin face stretching at his wrinkles.

"Good evening, everyone. It is finally that night again, the Summer Solstice Festival and we are pleased to hear that there will be a few more people performing than last year. But you don't want to listen to an old man drone on, shall we start with Victor?" The kindly old man set himself upon a tree stump near a house to watch as a tall teenager got up.

Merlin didn't really listen to Victor's story. He had told the same one every year ever since Merlin could remember and could tell it almost by heart. The sorcerer kept his blue eyes on that pretty young girl with Walter. Now that the performances had begun, the girl had looked up at Victor, eyes shining with something Merlin couldn't place. Wonder? Awe? Or something else, he couldn't know.

Then she turned to look at him, straight in the eyes. Quickly, Merlin looked elsewhere, hoping she hadn't noticed him gazing at her.

All of a sudden, Merlin noticed that the story telling in the background had gone and silence had taken over. The elder didn't bother to get up from his stump, instead just gestured.

"You there, boy, your turn."

Merlin froze.

"Go on, Merlin!" He heard a voice from the other side of the semicircle the villagers had made. Will was calling out to him, grinning like a maniac and nodding. "Go on!" Will repeated and the young sorcerer had no choice but to stand up, in front of the crowd.

He looked out into the audience and his breath caught from a rush of adrenaline. He could do this, he could perform in front of the people of Ealdor, his friends. Then he remembered the girl with Walter and glanced downwards to see what she was doing. They were only two or so metres apart, but even so Merlin could see the glitter in her dark eyes as she gazed up at him and his shadow cast a black shape upon Walter next to her.

Merlin shook off his nerves, and was finally ready to sing for the first time.


	9. Chapter 9

_Wow I'm sorry. But did anyone see the end of Merlin? Course you did, what am I saying? It makes me angry, even now I just think they should've done so much more with it, you know? Anyway. Oh and after this story's finished I was thinking about doing a before, like when Arthur finds out he has magic, thoughts on that? Anyway happy reading!_

Merlin didn't know what he was doing, to be honest. He had started singing quietly, the lovely lullaby his mother had taught him and like they had agreed he would sing. He didn't focus on the words nor the tune, but remembered that the whole village was watching him, judging.

Looking towards the ground, Walter's girl caught his eye and mouthed to him 'Louder!', so Merlin did... only this time, it wasn't the lullaby.

Merlin's song changed drastically from the humble melody. Now it was a loud, crashing noise, and although it was only Merlin singing it, the crowd could have sworn there were instruments somewhere as they jumped with the sudden change into an animalistic song.

The crowd thought there at least had to be a drum somewhere accompanying him, as the way Merlin was thumping his foot on the grass couldn't be near enough to cause the beat they could hear inside their heads.

However, they also felt something else in the air. Something which caused all to stare at the warlock in a sort of daze. No one knew what it was, except for one. Walter was the only one not enthralled by Merlin's new song. He knew what that feeling was that came over the crowd. He'd felt it before long ago... It could only be magic.

Merlin himself didn't know what was happening. Feeling the rise in magic within him, he had just let it out, not being able to control it that well yet. So there he was, stamping on the grass and almost shouting with the effort to keep up with the practically nonsense song coming from his mouth. The words made no sense to Merlin, even if they were a language he would recognise, he probably wouldn't have known what he was saying anyway. Feeling everyone's eyes on him, he opened his own blue orbs for the first time since starting the song, and saw everyone staring back.

Finishing the song abruptly as his mind could manage, Merlin breathed in deep and sang with feeling the last, long note. Then he stopped, and time seemed to stand still for a moment as the people were shaken from their reveries. The elder was the first to speak.

"Well..." Seemingly lost for words, the elder rubbed his stubbly chin as he thought. Before he could continue, however, Merlin found himself sitting back down, only this time he was sitting right next to Walter's girl. A little voice whispered in his mind that he should not have done that, and when Merlin questioned which the voice was referring to, it simply answered 'All of it'.

"Shall we continue?" The elder asked, and there was a murmuring of agreement from most of the villagers, some still had their eyes on Merlin, wary and slightly confused. "You, there, your turn."

A woman got up from behind and made her way to the front to begin her piece, but Merlin wasn't really listening. Suddenly, someone beside him spoke.

"That was amazing." Merlin turned his head to look at the girl, and he gave a small smile, nodded once in thanks then turned to stare into the flames again. Yet, she continued to look at him, sitting next to her on the fairly wet ground which no one seemed to mind. "No, really, you were absolutely amazing. Where did you learn to sing like that? Who taught you that song? I've never heard anything like it!" she whispered excitedly.

"My... mother taught me that song, it's Latin." He lied smoothly.

The girl nodded, satisfied with his answer. Merlin looked at her again and realised with a start that Walter had been watching their conversation. He leaned back quickly, eager to get out of the old mans sight.

"So what's your name?" Merlin sighed inwardly knowing he should answer, but didn't want to, for fear of what Walter could do. Little did he know, Walter was already planning something for the one he had dubbed 'magic scum'.

"Merlin, and you are...?"

"Raelle." She grinned and Merlin couldn't help but return it, he had to admit, she was pretty beautiful but he could still feel Walter's eyes burning into his skull as the old man watched.


	10. Chapter 10

_Okay, I'm an ass, yup. Sorry this is so short but I promised another chapter and I had a busy day today so couldn't write more sorry, but this is a chapter and quite an appropriate place to end the chapter I think. Expect the next one in.. lets say no more than two weeks, that cool with everyone? _

The performances went on until the dead of night, when everything was dark and every villager was cold and sleepy. Some rested weary heads on their friends and family, and fell asleep, listening to poems, melodies and stories, comforting the coldness, helped along by the burning embers of the once huge fire. Merlin was not one to fall asleep easily, especially when he had stories to listen to.

The young warlock had always loved stories of adventure, trust, and most of all, when magical creatures were involved. He felt connected with them, as he had magic and they were magical. But there was something more. At the mention of dragons, Merlin would shiver, not of fear, but of something he couldn't quite place...

So when it was announced by a drowsy elder that the show was over, there was a mixed response. Some got up immediately, to get home to stoke their fires and warm their hands, and some left slower, dragging heavy limbs tiredly.

"Goodbye, Merlin." Merlin was pulled out of his reverie at watching the villagers mosey home by a female voice. Looking up, Raelle smiled at him as she and her father left, a sour look on the old man's face. Merlin returned the small smile and his face flushed slightly.

After the girl had told the warlock her name, they hadn't talked again. Will had been watching the interaction between Raelle and Merlin and saw how Walter was looking at his best friend. If Will had to describe it, he would have probably picked 'murderous'. So to distract his friend from that girl he knew wasn't going to do him any good, as soon as the next person finished, Will had gotten up quickly and sat on the other side of his best friend.

Thinking of Will, Merlin glanced to his other side, where Will was. He was sleeping soundly, face down in the long grass, and taking a hold of his shoulder, Merlin shook him a little to wake him. Once Will was awake, he hadn't even bothered to say goodbye to Merlin, for he had been so incredibly tired, he had just lumped home again and wrapping his arms around himself.

For all those who had already gone home, freezing and drowsy, Merlin stayed where he was. He had learnt how to warm himself using his magic only a year or two before, but he'd never found a more useful piece of his magic. So Merlin sat, knees brought up against his chest as he stared into the dying fire.

Finally, after every other villager had gone back to their own houses, Merlin was alone. At least, that's what he thought.


	11. Chapter 11

_I knoow, another short one, I'm terribly sorry! I think the next one is going to be much longer though so I didn't want this and that to be added together blah blah blah. I think this is another cliffhanger... sorry about that. And sorry about the last one! Anyway. Wanna get reading? _

Walter watched from the shadows, behind Merlin, out of the boy's line of sight. He would teach that little freak of nature that magic is evil. And worse still, the magic boy had been staring at Raelle, ogling at her like a piece of meat. Oh yes, once Walter was finished with him, there wouldn't be a sniff of magic in Ealdor ever again, he was certain of it.

A warm breeze brushed past Merlin's face and he closed his eyes, enjoying the natural warmth of the fire. Then something crept up his spine. A shiver. The tense feeling of someone watching. He didn't dare move. All of a sudden, it happened.

A grubby hand wrapped itself over the warlock's mouth and nose, cutting off his air, forbidding him from screaming and a whisper hissed into his ear.

"Be quiet, boy," which is all Merlin heard before the blood rushing through his head and lack of air got to him, and he passed out.

With a quick gasp, Merlin returned to consciousness and instantly noticed pain though from where he couldn't quite tell. Looking around, it seemed as though he was in some sort of house, albeit a tiny one, even smaller than his own cottage he shared with his mother. Filthy and cluttered, it looked as though no one had cleaned in years. Pots and plates lay scattered about a small sink, filled to the brim with grimy water in the corner. A wide makeshift mattress lay pathetically on the floor in another corner, a couple of blankets tossed carelessly on top. Other possessions were scattered about the room, but none of much use or value. Merlin couldn't see any other door other than the one straight ahead of him.

Light shone brightly out from the edges of the rotting door. Morning then, Merlin deducted. Wait, there were more important things than what time of day it was.

Only now did Merlin realise that his hands were held high above his head, tied with thick and dirty rope. He gasped, feeling the pull of the fraying rope on his bloody wrists. Looking down to escape what mess he had gotten himself in, he saw that he no longer had his shirt on either. At least the captor had the decency to let him keep his trousers.

On second thoughts, Merlin thought it more important he remember who kidnapped him. Frowning, he remembered the festival the night before, the pretty girl with the long hair... who was she again? Then it hit him. Walter's daughter. Walter. The voice he had heard spitting into his ear when he was taken, it had been the old man. So this must be the inside of his shack... _oh no._

Suddenly, the single door opened swiftly. As it did, Merlin thought to himself: _speak of the Devil... _


	12. Chapter 12

_Ugh, this one's a little.. off, I guess. But hey, it's a long one and it's another chapter at least (and its a day before I predicted it would be up). OH and we get more Arthur in the next chapter, FINALLY. This flashback thing was only supposed to be a chapter or two.. I guess I just write slow. Nothing much happens in each chapter, does it? never mind. I'm not very comfortable writing torture but I tried. OH WARNING THERE'S TORTURE IN THIS ONE.. yeah I'm not sure it's very good.. just wanted to warn people. anyway... _

"So... you have magic, hmm?" The old man stalked around Merlin, hands still tied tightly above his head. Playing with a knife, glinting in the gloom, Walter narrowed his dark eyes at Merlin, who tried to shift uncomfortably. Merlin didn't reply.

"A quiet one. You weren't so quiet speaking to my daughter last night, sorcerer." He spat in the warlock's face.

"I'm not a sorcerer." Merlin choked out, finding his voice more hoarse than he was expecting.

All of a sudden, Walter raised a hand and slapped Merlin across the face. His cheek, now red, stung like hell, but Merlin had a terrifying feeling that wasn't going to be the worst he experienced.

"I'm a warlock. I was born like this." The warlock found himself sounding more and more sure of himself, though in reality he was getting more and more frightened of the old man.

"Don't tell me lies." Walter was so close now, Merlin could smell his disgusting breath.

"I'm not lying."

Another slap, harder this time across Merlin's other cheek and he felt a ring cut into his pale face; a drop of blood ran swiftly over his cheekbone.

"Everybody knows magic is evil. Magic is for monsters. That's what you are: a monster. Nothing but a freak... Not to worry though, we'll soon have that magic out of you, won't we?" Walter gave a sweet smile, sickening Merlin. Gingerly, the old man lifted up his blade to Merlin's face, traced it along his cheek and down to his neck. Merlin gulped.

The knife was brought down - just below Merlin's collar bones - as Walter decided to begin, making a long cut on the boy's chest and earning a gasp of pain. Despite the cut being mainly superficial, both men knew it would probably scar; a hot droplet of scarlet liquid dribbled down Merlin's chest.

"You are going to bleed out that magic, boy." Walter hissed, raising the knife once more, this time to Merlin's stomach, though the hot skin didn't touch the cool metal. The young boy prepared himself, breathing heavily just as his captor was.

The knife was pulled and dragged, it sliced and licked at Merlin's pale skin like fire and soon the warlock's body was in shreds. Although the lacerations stung like ice, none were deep enough to kill him. They covered his entire torso, from his waist to just below his collarbones where the first painful cut was made. Blood dribbled freely from many of the injuries and soaked into the waistband of Merlin's trousers.

When Merlin had tried with all his might to get the rope off his wrists, his magic wouldn't comply. Being so young, Merlin hadn't ever told anyone about his magic other than Will or his own mother, let alone trying to train his magic to actually do something useful.

Instead, Merlin resorted to screaming.

Of course, partly from the pain inflicted on him by the terrible old man but partly because it was the only thing he could think to do if his magic wouldn't work with him.

So as Merlin yelled, Walter became angrier. Not because he was shouting, oh no, no one would hear the boy from where they were in his tiny shack, but because he was expecting the boy to use magic to try to escape. The cuts he made on the boy got deeper and deeper as Walter's temper rose. Finally, he'd had enough of the magic boys taunting by not using magic.

"Why?! Why aren't you using it? Why aren't you trying to escape?" Walter spat loudly in Merlin's face, ceasing the torture for now. Merlin looked up at him weakly.

"I am." he panted through the pain and Walter slapped his already scarlet cheek.

"No... no you're not. You're supposed to use magic. Why aren't you using it, boy?"

Frowning, Merlin pulled gently at the rope around his raw wrists.

"I can't." he whispered, just audible enough for Walter to hear him.

"Can't? Idiot boy, you have the strongest magic I have ever seen. Prove it to me you have it. I know you do. Use it!" the older man pointed the blade's tip at Merlin's nose, his face purple in confusion.

"I can't... I don't know wh-" Merlin didn't bother to continue for he knew it probably wouldn't be the answer Walter was wanting. What answer did Walter want? Why did he want Merlin to use his magic? Or better yet, why did he want him to 'prove' it? None of it made any sense to Merlin.

Yet, to Walter, it was crystal. If Merlin were to free himself by using his magic like he had been expecting, then the whole village would know. He would have the proof of the broken ropes and his own possible sustained injuries to show for Merlin's magical escape. Then there would be one less magic user in the world... and Walter would do anything for that.


	13. Chapter 13

_Look, finally back to normality! I honestly only meant that flashback bit to be like two or three chapters. Oops. Never mind, here's the next chapter and Arthurs back. I think this is going to be the second to last chapter.. though I tend to go off on tangents so maybe 2 or 3 more chapters. hopefully not though. Anyway, happy reading!_

Arthur stared at Merlin, blue eyes wide and mouth gaping open like a fish. Finally, he managed to stutter out a question.

"What happened? How did you...?" the king wasn't sure how to phrase the question so instead he just sat beside his warlock. Shaking and holding back tears, Merlin looked fixedly at the floor and took a deep breath.

"It was Raelle... she came in and begged him to stop. She hadn't known what he was doing, she had been out getting firewood or something. She yelled at him and he fled and she followed. Apparently she had told my mother were I was so she came for me after but Raelle was gone... I don't know where she went, I didn't even thank her, I should have said something to her but at the time I couldn't, I hurt so much and-"

"Merlin, it's alright. You're alright," Arthur cut his best friend off as he could almost feel the panic rising within his thin frame and shaking both of them to the core. Silence fell over them for a minute and neither made eye contact with the other. At last, Merlin spoke again after collecting himself a little.

"Do you want to know what the worst part was? After Raelle had stopped... him, I felt angry," Merlin now turned his stormy blue eyes to Arthurs. The king raised his eyebrows marginally.

"It's completely understandable. He had kept you there against your will."

"No," he said sternly, then his voice softened, "no, you don't understand. I wasn't angry with_ him_..." Trailing off, the warlock found himself trembling even more so as he pulled his hands up to rub over his face. Arthur frowned.

"Who were you angry with?" he asked innocently, not knowing the darkness it might spark inside his friend.

"Everyone. Not Walter, not Raelle, everyone else. My mother, Will, my so-called friends of Ealdor. They left me there to die, no one even knew I was gone. No one heard the screams, Arthur, no one came to save me!" Merlin stood up quickly and paced as Arthur watched in somewhat curiosity and fear. Soon, Merlin became less ecstatic and sat down on the wooden chair again and his voice broke when he whispered: "No one even cared."

"Merlin, look at me. Look at me, Merlin." Eventually, the young man obeyed. "I understand how you must have felt. While I have never been in that situation myself, I know others who have, knights, who have felt exactly the same way you have. It's only natural to be angry because they were the ones who were supposed to save you and they couldn't. It's okay, Merlin, it's not your fault." Arthur noticed how relieved the warlock was to hear that, to hear that he wasn't the only one.

"Sorry," Merlin mumbled and Arthur smiled lightly.

"There's no need for that, Merlin. I'm glad you told me. Thank you," the blond man put his hand gently onto his Court Sorcerer's shoulder who looked at him with watery eyes.

"So you don't hate me?" he said quietly and Arthur looked at him in shock.

"Merlin, I could never hate you. Two halves of the same coin, remember?" the king grabbed Merlin's head and rubbed his head hard with his knuckles playfully.

"Ow!" Merlin protested, laughing. Once Arthur released his death-hold on Merlin, a comfortable silence took over again.

"What happened to him? In the end, I mean," Arthur glanced at Merlin, just to check what he was asking wasn't overstepping his place.

"He wasn't seen again, nor his daughter. They just disappeared..."

The king could tell Merlin was over-thinking what had happened too much.

"Merlin, if you ever needed to talk to anyone about this, I'm always there for you, you know that, right?" The warlock nodded minutely. "Good. And if anyone else pesters you with this like I did, you just send them to me, I'll take care of them." Merlin smiled at Arthur, knowing he'd be safe with him.

"Thank you, Arthur, really. Thank you for understanding." The blond man put his hand gently on his warlocks shoulder who had tears in his blue eyes still. Arthur didn't reply, for there was no need to. He knew the story behind Merlin not wanting to sing and respected him all the more because of it. The warlock had come out the other side, sure with a few physical and emotional scars, but that never made anyone less of a man.


	14. Chapter 14

_OOOHKAY so this is the last chapter. yeah it just seems a good place to round off. There will be a sequel, I think, with more Arthur and Merlin and definitely more magic because there hasn't been nearly enough magic in this. I hope this ending is good enough! Love and thanks to everyone who's reviewed/favourited/followed this story and/or me! And sorry for all those times I've kept you waiting for the next chapter! this is the lastttt chapter. (I'm relieved and kinda sad and kinda glad haha) Anyway, happy reading, for the last time on Merlin's Voice..._

The king and all he cared deeply about sat around the large circular table, conversing, laughing and drinking wine like no tomorrow. This was to be the late celebration of Merlin's promotion to Court Sorcerer, which had, so far, been eventful to say the least.

Arthur sat in the middle of his two favourite people: his wife and his warlock. Every so often, Merlin and Arthur would catch the others eye and they'd share a comforting look. The king knew that what they had talked about earlier had been hard for his friend to relive and thought he could at least reassure him that everything was okay now Arthur knew about what had happened to Merlin.

Many stories of Merlin's childhood, long before Walter's time, told by Hunith and caused much laughter and even Gaius caused a few chuckles with his stories of hiding Merlin's magic for all those years before Arthur found out. Then, abruptly and without indication as to why, Merlin stood up. For a beat, nobody moved, but all stared at Merlin. It was as if he had suddenly been possessed and he gazed ahead while speaking.

"I'd like to say something." Without looking for approval from Arthur, Merlin continued. "I... I told Arthur something earlier and while it is not something I wish to repeat, it taught me something. Saying it aloud made me realise that... I'm not alone. I have all of you." Smiling, the warlock moved away from the table and went to stand a few steps back from it. By now, everyone sat around the table, the king, queen, their knights, the Court Physician and Merlin's mother, all looked fixedly at Merlin.

Without warning, Arthur beamed.

Despite only seeing the look his warlock had on his face once before while they were both drunk, Arthur recognised it well. As the others all noticed the grin on their kings face, some of them began to pick up on what was about to happen, and joined Arthur.

"I don't have to be afraid anymore," Merlin said, laughing, relieved.

Then, slowly, Merlin began to sing. He let the words of the Old Tongue swallow him and his instincts took over as a slow drumbeat thrummed throughout the room, everyone felt it within their bodies. Next came the strange instrument Arthur had seen when Merlin had sang for the first time in front of him, glowing a burnt orange. The light from the instrument seemed to travel up Merlin's arms towards his face then disappeared at his jaw-line. All of a sudden, his eyes opened wide, blindingly gold as words tumbled from his mouth poetically.

None understood what he was saying (other than Gaius, who picked up every few words or so), but if they had said it wasn't the most amazing thing they'd ever heard, they would be lying. Even Arthur and the knights who had heard Merlin sing before, hadn't heard it with as much passion or ferocity as he was putting into it now.

His voice filled the room for some minutes, while his friends stared in awe and respect. Although only three of Merlin's friends knew what had happened to him, the rest could clearly see how much courage it took for him to sing like he was.

After a few minutes, Merlin stopped all of a sudden, the song over. The drumbeat silenced and the strange instrument in his hands vanished.

No one moved, for a beat. Then with the smallest of hesitations, all of Merlin's friends were around him, complimenting him and clapping him on the back, not knowing that scars littered his torso. But it didn't matter anymore.

Merlin grinned widely. He really didn't need to be scared anymore, no one wanted to hurt him here. Now his thoughts from before came back, but he brushed them off, thinking himself idiotic for even thinking it could happen again.

Merlin felt safe with Arthur, it had just taken a story to let him see that. Now Arthur knew of Merlin's 'secret', the warlock could tell him anything and wouldn't be judged or hated, he knew that now. He also knew that together, they were unstoppable.


	15. Just an authors note yay

Hello again!

Yep, not a chapter but! There's a prequel to this I'm writing, set before this story and is a reveal fic. The first chapters pretty short but it sets things in motion, so just go to my.. page? thing and find it there if you liked this one. It's called _Underdog_.. so.. yeah if you liked this one but wanted more Arthury stuffs then.. yeah. I'm not good at talking to people I apologise. Go read it if you want, if you don't want, then... okay!

Thanks again to all who favourited/reviewed/followed this story.

A x


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